28 Sep Saunas and Ukraine: Co-Created Wellbeing
Have you been in a position at work where a ‘wellbeing’ initiative has been implemented and it fell flat, not quite meeting the needs of staff? It’s not uncommon and the solution is a simple but powerful one: co-creation for wellbeing. Essentially initiating a co-produced design that involves the implementation of what staff need, rather than what we think they need.
A great example of this is demonstrated in the recent BBC documentary Living Next Door to Putin. When the frontline commanders were asked what further support they may need (along the lines of stereotypical equipment for a war zone), what they asked for shocked their neighbouring countries. Saunas. Arguably a counter-intuitive request, and one I’m sure many of us would not have thought of. The soldiers’ wellbeing included having a shower and a sauna on their break from the frontline, the implementation of which provided them with a real and effective wellbeing break.
But what do we really mean by co-creation for wellbeing and how can a story from the Ukraine frontline aid us back home? Here at The Wellbeing Collective, we believe in the power of kindness, and this includes facilitating ways to look after your staff/self in the most challenging of times. By doing this, you can install and achieve sustainable and powerful outcomes.
Helping people name what they actually need, and not what the organisation thinks they need, enables a more achievable result.
For example, this week The Wellbeing Collective worked with a specialist frailty service. This service supports older people with complex health needs including receiving their chosen palliative care in the comfort of their own home. The staff are required to work between acute hospitals, primary care, social care and GP practices. Providing hospital care in the community, from equipment to vast knowledge requirements, ensures patients survive and also have control over how they pass. The job, whilst rewarding, can be incredibly stressful and complex on a daily basis. Post pandemic, lots of services including education, public sectors and health care are working in new ways. This complexity and change comes with the increase in distress, stress and at times, trauma. Therefore, The Wellbeing Collective helped the service by co-creation. We helped them create team and individual wellness plans that not only supported individual incremental gains from making tiny shifts in their own lives, but also supported their wellbeing as a team and wider service. These plans were written up in a concise, easy to read format that enabled the sharing and distribution of ideas, thoughts and outcomes.
Our solution is to work with people to create a practical habit forming plan and help each other stick to them.
When you create the circumstance so your staff can say what they need, alongside embedding a safe and open culture, one where staff are not afraid to ask and managers are not afraid to listen or say yes, you can achieve a co-created wellbeing organisation that truly supports its staff. A safe space where it’s ok to have ideas, ask and make things happen.
Want to be part of a co-created wellbeing organisation? Get in touch today and learn more about how TWBC can support your facilitation via info@thewellbeingcollective.co.uk or check out our website www.thewellbeingcollective.co.uk
BBC article: Why mobile saunas are being sent to Ukraine’s front line
BBC iPlayer: Living next door to Putin – Series 1: Episode 2
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001qpqy
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